Strawberry fields forever

Strawberry fields forever. Where nothing is real, and there's nothing to get hung about...

Belle's psychedelic, man.

Spending time with her makes me feel euphoric, especially when she's in my arms. It honestly takes me to another place. Like a drug, I hallucinate and have visions of taking her home with us. I imagine we're on the couch at home.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to strawberry fields...

I'm in a dream-like state when I'm with her, and I can't get enough. 

Arabella was scheduled to have a chest x-ray today, but she's had a lot of x-rays lately, so the doctors decided to give her a break. Why expose her to more radiation if it's not necessary, right? I like that kind of thinking from a doctor. 

X-rays wouldn't likely tell them anything new, anyway. They know she just needs a lot of time for her lungs to heal and become more efficient. 

Arabella did, however, have an echoocardiogram today. An 'echo' basically captures the heart in action. It gives doctors valuable information about the structure of the heart and how well it's working. 

Belle was a very good girl throughout the 45 minute procedure. Mom and dad took turns soothing, comforting, and talking to Belle so that her oxygen levels remained as stable as possible.

The sonographer at the bedside was mainly looking for signs of pulmonary hypertention, something Arabella struggled with in the past (before her PDA was closed). They want to make sure that her breathing issues are only related to her impaired lungs, and not to a defect in her pulmonary arteries, which are responsible for transporting blood from the heart to the lungs. 

Results of echos (and things like x-rays) are usually shared with us on the next day once the team has had a chance to carefully analyze the images and videos. 

Arabella's 9 o'clock supplements and meds. Most often, they are administered before or during her feed, and they go down the very same tube.

We gave her a quick bath and placed her in an over-sized onesie. It was much too large for her, but we wanted to make sure she was wearing something that had long sleeves and covered her legs. She gets chilly after a bath. 

Arabella was comfortable, but visibly tired. It's a lot of excitement for one day. 

Sleep tight little Tinkerbell 💜